Stage two of the Dakar race ran through familiar territory as it streaked across the Argentinian wilderness. Racing from Resistencia, Argentina to San Miguel De Tucuman changed the terrain to be more akin to the Baja 1000 with high-speed desert tracks.

Recognizable Dakar and rally driver names are back up at the front of the pack. Sébastien Loeb, a top-notch French racer, pushed his Peugeot hard and took a route where he could utilize that speed versus focusing on navigation. Nasser Al-Attiya, of Qatar, came in second to Loeb, losing his stage one lead in the general standings.

Dakar now has a UTV category to pack even more action into the epic race. – Photo DPPI

Xavier Pons, of Spain, came off a wonderful second place finish in stage one to only get a few kilometers from the start to lose a rear wheel. The devastating blow forced him to wait for his assistance team to arrive and crushing his dreams of a good finish in the general standings.

Martin Van Den Brink, hailing from the Netherlands, crossed the finish line in his Renault with the fastest time in the truck category. His win was a full two minutes faster than the second-place finisher, Russian Dmitry Sotnikov who is driving a Kamaz truck.

When asked about his win, Sébastien Loeb explained “Sure, I like to be in this position but it’s a bit early in the rally. But it’s good to have a pace like that.” Loeb continues, “Today was a stage that was really, really fast; a bit unusual. I hope tomorrow will continue to be at the same rhythm for the fight. I think we did a good stage with no mistakes – that was the most important thing.”

Stay tuned for more Dakar coverage here on Off Road Xtreme!